[Sharon]

How Health Care Decisions Get Made, The Policy Cycle and How Policies Get Made

Discussion starters:

What are some examples of the different types of policies that affect nursing in Canada? Would you consider yourself a “politically astute” nurse?  What are some ways in which nurses can become active in policy as advocates?

[Marilyn]

Hello Everyone,

As you can see, we’ve jumped straight into the course content. This course is designed to build on the foundational concepts introduced in the “Introduction to Leadership” course. If you haven’t taken that course, don’t worry. By drawing on your critical thinking skills and lived experiences, you will be able to successfully complete this course. Along the way, you will also have the opportunity to learn from your peers and contribute to the collective knowledge of the group.

Looking forward to great discussion!

Marilyn

[Jessica]

Nursing in Canada is influenced by policies at the federal, provincial, organizational and professional levels. Federal and provincial laws and regulations govern who can practice nursing, as well as outline standards regarding scope of practice. Healthcare organizations create policies and standard operating procedures to support compliance with best practices. All these policies help shape a Nurses’ responsibility and decision making.

I resonated with the Nursing Now article as my clinical background is in infection prevention and control and would consider myself on more of the upstream approach in terms of preventing infections. However, we do will experience downstream approaches, for example, when an outbreak is declared. Responses to both approaches are influenced by policies at all levels.

I am confident in my knowledge and understanding of Nursing in the specialty of infection prevention and control, however I recognize I may not know everything related to policies, legislation, and the decision-making processes. My organization has a variety of policies that were created with the health and safety of staff and Patients in mind and to ensure we are following the appropriate guidelines set out by the ministry and public health. This includes outbreak thresholds, communicable disease reporting, etc. While I stay informed about changes to infection prevention and control standards and organizational policies, I would benefit from gaining a deeper understanding of the policy-making process at provincial and federal levels.

Examples of things a Nurse could do to remain active in policy include, identifying gaps and recommending practice improvements (micro), serve on organizational committees, participate in quality improvement initiatives, and contribute to developing or revising organizational policies and procedures (meso), and join professional organizations, participate in advocacy campaigns, and meet with elected officials/writing to members of parliament (macro).

[Marion Catherine]

Questions:
1. What are some examples of the different types of policies that affect nursing in Canada? 2. Would you consider yourself a “politically astute” nurse? 3. What are some ways in which nurses can become active in policy as advocates?
Answers:
1. Public policy, Public Health policy, Nursing Act, CNO standards of care and ethics
2. I do not consider myself to be a “politically astute” nurse. Why? The experiences of life with those who are politically active tended to be quite radical in their approach to change. I have backed away from this method of advocacy leaning toward an educational evidence-based approach with a calm assuredness. Saying that, I also tend to use theatre as a tool for education and getting poignant points across to general public. Hat and that I am really very new to the health care system and am learning more and more every day about the nuance of health care and its policy framework.
3. Continuing education in the social determinants of health, the health care system, CNO nursing standards, legal range for public health advocacy – pick an area – mine retirement homes and long-term care facilities. Engaging in creative expressions where meaning can be made clearer through entertainment. This is not to imply that this approach is taken less seriously than any other mainstream method of eliciting change, rather my approach may allow for a calmer presentation that permeates resistance.

[Author]

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